Notre Dame adds to lore with victory

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- They walked off the field stunned, the gleam of their golden helmets suddenly dull.

Poised on the brink of celebration, UCLA's Bruins were stuck with an unexpected dose of dejection as Notre Dame stunningly rallied to claim a come-from-behind 20-17 victory in front of a crowd of 80,795 Saturday at Notre Dame Stadium.

Magic arrived for the Irish just as the clock was running down.

With 62 seconds left, the Irish, staring at an 80-yard chasm between them and triumph, went to work.

"The only way to do something is call the play and execute," offensive lineman Bob Morton said.

That's what happened on the 45-yard touchdown pass from Brady Quinn to Jeff Samardzija that culminated a three-play, 35-second drive that finished off the Bruins.

"I thought he was going to fall down," Morton said of Samardzija, who hurdled away from two Bruins before stumbling into the end zone. "The only reason I was running was to go pick him up so we could run another play, and then the dude got into the end zone."

UCLA (4-3) may have come into Saturday's game off a disappointing, 30-20 battering last week at the hands of Oregon, but they made the Irish offense appear sluggish.

"Our offense came out lethargic," Notre Dame Coach Charlie Weis said. "They definitely were getting the best of us."

Quinn spent much of the day running away from a fierce Bruins pass rush, suffering five sacks and at least a half-dozen quarterback hurries.

After the Bruins, leading 17-13, stuffed a fourth-and-1 sneak by Quinn with 2:20 left in the game the situation was bleak for Notre Dame.

"I was just hoping for one more chance," Quinn said. "My high school career ended with the defense on a third-and-10, and the [opposing] offense ended up converting on it, so we never got another shot."

Saturday wouldn't end that way when the Irish forced a punt after three UCLA running plays. And Quinn, having gotten that shot, made it count.